by Lindsay Stordahl on December 22nd, 2009
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Dogs’ needs are often overlooked during holiday road trips, so I thought I’d list a few reminders if your dog is lucky enough to come along. Dogs are usually extra naughty when visiting somewhere new, right? 1. Hide the chocolate from your dog. When the car is stuffed with goodies, keep all the tempting presents in the trunk if your dog will be alone in the car. Wrapping paper and boxes will not stop a ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on December 7th, 2009
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Dogs pick up on more words than we give them credit for. They are very capable of learning 100 to 200 words and some learn more. In the book “The Loved Dog” Tamar Geller encourages dog owners to teach their dogs as many words as possible by saying words like “walk,” “drink,” “cat” or “play” over and over. I made a list of every word I know my mutt Ace recogn ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on November 2nd, 2009
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My current foster dog is a tan Pomeranian mix I named Elli. I can’t tell you how cute and sweet she is. She wants to be with me at all times, and she will be a great companion for the right person. Elli gets along with my mutt Ace, and she does not bother my cats. She knows sit, shake and comes when called. She also seems to be housebroken. No dog is perfect, though, including Elli. Her main issue right now is ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on September 22nd, 2009
18 Comments »
Ace’s tennis ball obsession was at its worst recently. We were on a 45-minute road trip, and he whined the entire time in the car because he knew there was a ball in my bag. When I finally took the ball out, he was so fixated it appeared he was having a seizure (he wasn’t). His head shook to the point where his teeth were chattering. He was drooling, staring and trembling. Once we reached our destination, my dog ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on September 1st, 2009
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Four years ago, I owned a purebred dog. This was before I owned a mutt, before I got involved in dog rescue and before I knew what a blog was. I’d never even thought about dog agility, starting a dog running business or fostering a pitbull. But each dog that enters my life really does seem to open a new chapter, and Ace has introduced me to a whole new world with dogs. Still, my life would not be the same without m ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on August 30th, 2009
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Well I can add a new obsession to Ace’s list – golf balls. Nothing frustrates me more than when my dog is so focused on a ball that he won’t respond to the most basic commands like come, heel, sit. So last week while Josh was hitting golf balls in the back yard (we’re fortunate to live along a large field), I took Ace out with us for a serious on-leash training session. I always tell people to work with the p ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on August 19th, 2009
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A dog does not have to be abused or traumatized by kids in order to be afraid of them. It could be that the dog simply has not been around kids enough and therefore sees them as loud, unpredictable and confusing. It’s always a good idea to socialize your dog by introducing her to as many different places, people, animals, noises and experiences as possible. If a dog is fearful of children, chances are she has not b ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on August 17th, 2009
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One of the ways I help rescue dogs is to bring them to adoption events. Sometimes some of the more “challenging” dogs do not get out enough, and that makes them even less likely to be adopted because they are not out in front of people. At adoption events, the dogs generally sell themselves as potential owners meet all the different dogs. Something about one dog will catch the attention of the right person, and I ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on August 10th, 2009
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I’ve seen too many rescue dogs adopted and then returned a month or two later. People are eager to adopt a “rescue” dog but then realize they have taken on more than they can handle. Perhaps part of the problem starts with the rescue organizations themselves for adopting out the “problem” dogs too eagerly. When a dog has been in a shelter or foster home for a year, it’s easy to adopt her out to the first ...
by Lindsay Stordahl on July 31st, 2009
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I didn’t see my mutt Ace for more than two weeks while I traveled across North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon and California last month. Ace got to stay with my parents in Wisconsin. I missed Ace terribly. But did he miss me? Nope. One mistake people make is to project human emotions to their dogs. It’s easy to do. I admit it made me feel better to believe Ace and my cats missed me. In reality, they p ...